1. Field of the Invention
Needlepoint, in the present day sense of the word, includes all kinds of embroidery done on canvas, varieties being known as quickpoint; grospoint; petitpoint; Bargello, also known as Florentine, flame or Hungarian embroidery; and other repeat patterns. The coarseness of the canvas base varies from, for example, 3 threads to 7 threads to the inch in quickpoint to more than 20 threads to the inch in petitpoint.
The present invention relates to a novel method of copying selected patterns in needlepoint which avoids the difficulties inherent in the methods previously known and used.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Needlework is an ancient art, specimens having been found in Egyptian tombs dating back to the 15th century B.C. Needlepoint came into its own in China during the 12th century A.C. and presently is enjoying a revival following a decline attributed to the advent of machinery.
In needlepoint, the commonest practice is to copy the desired pattern by counting stitches and background threads, selecting appropriate kinds of stitches from a wide variety of known variations. Publications such as "Needlepoint by Design" by Lane, published by Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1970, and "The New World of Needlepoint" by Perrone, published by Random House, Inc., New York, 1972, describe known methods of needlepointing from photographs and charts, or graphs, of various patterns.
Previous efforts to avoid the necessity of counting stitches in the course of such work have involved adhering pattern sheets to the cloth to be decorated and stitching the delineated pattern through such sheets and the material, as in Rick et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,756,434.
A need has existed, however, for a method and equipment meeting the special requirements of needlepoints for accurate placement of the required lengths and kinds of stitches required for the formation of pattern repeats positioned in a desired relationship to each other and to an overall design, and it is the object of the present invention to meet that need.